Counterparts
by miserymire
Summary: A collection of oneshots focusing on Ravio and Link. Not necessarily connected or in any order. - Dreading Yuga Ganon - Taking Care - Middle School - Waltzing Among The Stars - Retirement - Reunited - Confessions of a Sleep Singer - Hero's Day - Game Over 1 & 2 -
1. Summaries

****1\. Summaries****

 ** **2\. Dreading Yuga Ganon  
**** Link has saved all of the Sages. The only thing he has left to do is go to Lorule Castle and defeat Yuga Ganon. Link isn't so sure he can do it, but Ravio is. 988 words.

 ** **3\. Taking Care****  
Link comes back to his house/Ravio's shop, with cuts and slashes galore. Ravio helps him take care of his injuries. 1770 words.

 ** **4\. Middle School****  
AU. On the first day of middle school, Link and Ravio are assigned seats next to each other. Ravio keeps his hood up and head down throughout most of the day, but when it's time for gym class, he can't hide his face any longer. 973 words.

 ** **5\. Waltzing Among The Stars****  
AU inspired by Rosalina's Storybook in Super Mario Galaxy. Link's mother is up in the sky with the stars, and he just wants one chance to see her again. His chance comes on a fateful night when the Celestial child Ravio crashes to earth near his house. 4199 words.

 ** **6\. Retirement****  
Link is curious what exactly Ravio does in his so-called retirement. Suggested by KaylinElemental15. 728 words.

 ** **7\. Reunited  
**** It had been fourteen years since Lorule's Triforce was restored, fourteen years since Link had seen Ravio. He had long since accepted that being reunited was never going to happen. 1283 words.

 ** **8\. Confessions of a Sleep Singer****  
Slight Canon Divergence. Ravio, it turns out, sings songs in his sleep. __Lorulian__ songs. Songs that he shouldn't know. 1653 words.

 ** **9\. Hero's Day****  
Christmas themed! It's Hero's Day in Hyrule, a day of thanking heroes and spreading joy. Link and Ravio spend it together. 1046 words.

 ** **10\. Game Over - Part 1****  
Slight Canon Divergence. Perhaps the world shall not meet its demise after all. 2829 words.

 ** **11\. Game Over - Part 2****  
Slight Canon Divergence. Ravio makes it through Lorule Castle. Now he just has to win. 3272 words.


	2. Dreading Yuga Ganon

****I wrote this first one in January 2014, so it's just been sitting for over two years. Hope you like it.**** **  
**

* * *

"Link, you've gotten so far! You can do it!" Ravio encouraged the boy who was curled up in the corner of their house.

He shrugged in response, drew his eyebrows together and rested his forehead on his knees.

Ravio sighed, walking over to Link and sliding down the wall to sit next to him. "Did something happen that made you want to give up?"

Link groaned. "No. I'm just ... not ready."

"Well, ya know who is ready? Zelda is ready! You said she's still stuck on a canvas, right? Don't you want to save her?" Ravio asked. Link nodded, and Ravio put a hand on his back. "Then you gotta do it, buddy! You can't wait forever! There's no saving Zelda when you're six feet under!"

"That's what I'm scared of!" Link pulled his head up and looked towards the boy next to him. He was thankful Ravio wore that hood—it made him feel like maybe Ravio couldn't see the tears threatening to fall down his cheeks, even though he knew the eyes of the hood were made so he could see out but no one could see in.

"You're scared of waiting too long and dying? That's, uh, kind of a strange fear."

Link slapped his hand on his own forehead. "Not what I meant." He breathed heavily for a few moments before opening his mouth again. "I... I'm scared of dying trying to save her."

Ravio frowned. "Isn't it better to die trying than to die in fear?"

He nodded, pressings his palms into his eyes. "But what if I __do__ die? No one else can save her, apparently..."

"You need to stop thinking like that, buddy! You have fairies and potions, right? You're all good!"

Link threw his head back. "I had to use two fairies during the last boss I fought! And Yuga Ganon is gonna be a lot harder than some stupid oversized flower that blows beams of sand at you!"

Ravio moved so he was sitting in front of Link. "Who cares if you had to use fairies on a boss? I'm not saying Yuga will be easy to fight, but this time it'll be really worth it! With the other bosses, you saved a Sage in return, and now you'll be saving Zelda and two whole worlds in return! And now you have the Triforce of Courage, so use it! Be courageous and fight!"

Link took his hands down from his face and looked at Ravio with teary eyes. "But..."

"No buts, Mr. Hero! You've done so much, you can't just stop here! Think about when you do beat Yuga! You'll be all done! You can sleep in way too late, do some blacksmith-ing, go back to your old life..." Ravio suddenly frowned. "And I can go back to mine."

Link opened his mouth as if to say something, but shut it and looked down. He stood and looked out his window to see the sky becoming shades of red and purple. Ravio stood as well and saw what Link was looking at.

"Well, it's getting close to night time. Why don't you just spend the night at home and go do it tomorrow? You can prepare yourself tonight," Ravio suggested.

After receiving a nod from Link, Ravio arranged the room to pull out Link's bed and get his own tables out of the way.

"I bought everything, why do you still keep the tables out during the daytime?" Link asked, sitting on the edge of his bed.

"I dunno," Ravio said with a shrug as he sat next to Link. He could tell Link still was feeling rather anxious. "Why don't you go take a walk? Enemies probably aren't out at this time..."

Link nodded, then stood and walked out of the door without saying goodbye.

He wanted to believe everything Ravio had said. He knew that most of it was true; he had defeated all the other bosses, but that didn't make him feel better. Yuga Ganon was by no means a normal boss.

If he died to Yuga, what would happen? Zelda would stay in a painting forever, and Hyrule would be left without any royalty. The Sages would be waiting in the Sacred Realm for eternity. The Zoras would never get their queen back. The blacksmith and his wife would never see their son again, and the priest would never see his daughter again. Sahasrahla would lose his apprentice. The witch would live alone. The Hyrule Castle guards would be without one of their superiors.

Link knew the positives were amazing and probably did outweigh the negatives, but it was such a risk. He chanted in his head that he had to do it, even though he already knew this. He imagined the Sages going home, Zelda ruling over Hyrule again, and all of the monsters going away, but he couldn't stop imagining Yuga Ganon's trident slashing him with so much force that he'd die before hitting the ground, so mangled that no fairy could bring him back. What if he was destined to just die then and there?

 _ _Destined__. He had heard that so much throughout his journey. It was his destiny to do all of this. It was his destiny to crudely reenact the story of the legendary hero. Destiny was supposed to be a beautiful thing, but to him, it was a burden. A burden that any other person around Hyrule could fulfill, he thought. Why him? Why now? What's so heroic about a scrawny, barely teenage boy?

He stayed out long after the sky became pitch black with scattered white stars. Link took his time walking back to his house, and opened the door to find that Ravio had fallen asleep in his bed. He chuckled, removed his boots and slid under the covers next to him.

Link closed his eyes and prayed to the Goddesses that everything would work out perfectly tomorrow.


	3. Taking Care

****Once again, written in January 2014.****

* * *

Link opened the door to his house slowly, twitching in pain at every slight movement he made. As soon as he was in the door he heard a gasp and footsteps running towards him.

"Link, what did I tell you about getting hurt?!" Ravio carefully grabbed Link and helped him sit next to the door. "Hang in there, buddy!" He walked outside and put a closed sign on the door before coming back in and shutting it.

The blood-stained boy sitting on the floor had his eyes shut in agony, and could only hear things scraping across his floor and his roommate fumbling about. He opened one of his eyes to see the tables out of the way and Ravio pulling Link's bed down.

"Come here, buddy." Ravio walked over to Link and helped him removed his tunic, boots, and gloves. "Here, lay down on the rug. I'll make you some soup with a potion mixed in." He helped Link stand, and practically carried the weak boy to the rug.

Link groaned as he lay down. "But I have blood all over me... It'll get on your rug."

"Blood can be washed out of rugs. Life can't be brought back to your dead body," Ravio said as he started to rummage through Link's cupboards."So, uh... How'd you get so messed up?"

Ravio dumped his ingredients into the pot before grabbing large bandages and a red potion and walking over to Link. He lifted Link's head a bit and poured the red potion into his mouth. Link gulped it all down.

"Got ganged up on by a lot of sword soldiers," Link answered. He hissed in pain as Ravio went on to lift his undershirt to place a bandage over the largest wound.

"Really? I thought you could take those guys with no problem," Ravio said as he continued placing smaller bandages over the rest of Link's cuts.

"N-not when there are twenty of them surrounding you from every angle..."

Ravio got a rag and wiped off the blood that had run down Link's face from his nose, being gentle over the cut on his lip. "You feeling any better yet? I think the potion is slowing down the bleeding." He stood to go back over to the pot of soup he had cooking.

Link groaned, and for the next fifteen minutes his house was silent aside from his deep breathing and Ravio stirring his soup here and there.

"It's done," Ravio said, pouring the steaming soup into a bowl and sitting beside Link. "I put more red potion in the soup too, so that'll help. Can you sit up a bit?"

Link nodded and sat up, his weak arms shaking as they tried to support his weight. Ravio rolled up the rug under Link's elbows so he could rest back them, and Link sighed in relief. Ravio then held up a spoonful of the soup to Link's face. He got an unamused look in return.

"You're really going to spoon feed me soup? I already feel bad enough, you don't have to make me feel like a baby," Link said.

"Shut up and eat it," Ravio playfully said as he pushed the spoon to Link's pursed lips. "You're hurt and I'm helping you. Accept it. And eat."

The orange haired boy chuckled and gave in, opening his mouth to allow Ravio to put the spoon in. He smiled. "It's really good."

"Thanks, Mr. Hero! I've been practicing my cooking while you're away. Now that I'm all retired and stuff I had to find something else to do, you know? Aside from napping and lounging around. Gotta eat, too. From the look on your face I'm assuming you want me to just shut up now, right? Headache, maybe?"

Link nodded, and continued to be fed until his soup was finished.

"Well, now you've taken two whole red potions and had soup, so you gotta be feeling better, right?" Ravio stood to take the empty bowl to the table and set it down.

"Yeah." Link stood and unfolded the rug and sighed as he noticed the blood stains on it, as well as the blood stains trailing up to the rug. "I got blood everywhere," he said, looking down at his red-stained brown undershirt and white leggings.

"How about we go down to the little lake South of your house and you can bathe and wash your clothes out?" Ravio suggested. "And I'll get water so when we get back I can clean the floors. It's not like there are any monsters there, just gulls and sand crabs."

"All right," Link said with a nod.

Link put his shoes on and picked his tunic up. Ravio grabbed the bowl and a bucket to put water in, and then helped Link out the door and down to the lake. As soon as they were there, Ravio filled the bucket with water and began to wash the bowl.

"Aren't you getting in?" Ravio asked.

"Uh..." Link scratched his head. "Most people bathe with their clothes off and you're kinda sitting right there..."

"Combining the fact that it's night time along with the fact that I'm wearing this hood over my face, I can't quite see anything right now. And even if I could, we're friends, right? Housemates, even."

"I guess, but... If I'm gonna wash my clothes, they'll be soaking, so what am I gonna wear back to my house?"

"For someone who doesn't normally talk much, you sure are coming up with a lot of excuses to not bathe. I'm starting to wonder how bad you smell, really," Ravio said with a chuckle.

Link rolled his eyes and stripped his clothes and bandages before slowly walking in. He hissed at the cold water penetrating his wounds. "Forgot... Can you go and get new bandages and a towel for me for when I get out?"

"Oh! Really did forget those, huh? Alright, yeah."Ravio stood, grabbing the now clean bowl and the bucket of water with him. "I'll be back really quick!"

Link started to worry after a few minutes of Ravio not returning—it wasn't like his house was that far away from the lake. He could feel his fingertips and toes starting to become wrinkly from the water by the time he heard footsteps running towards him.

"I'm back!" Ravio said. "I got your towel and bandages, and also picked up my rug to clean it."

"What took you so long?" Link asked.

"Sorry, I lied about being back quick, didn't I? Well, I figured I'd go ahead and clean up the mess you made. And I got my rug so I could clean it out, like I said." Ravio sat the rug in the shallow end of the lake, attempting to scrub the blood off with his hands.

"I think I'm all clean by now, so..." Link said.

"Oh, I really was gone that long then. I'll just let the rug soak here overnight, I guess. Do you need help putting the bandages back on?" Ravio stood and flicked his hands back and forth quickly to get the water off of them.

Link swam up to the shallow end—where Ravio had turned around—and walked out of the lake, quickly grabbing his towel and drying himself off. "Why don't we put the bandages on at my house where you can actually see?" He wrapped the towel around his hips.

The two walked back to Link's house. Link smiled at the sight of his shining floors. Ravio had even gone so far as to clean the places where Link hadn't gotten any blood at all.

"Now your floors are completely clean! It looked a little weird having only one section of them washed so I went ahead and cleaned all of it, heh heh," Ravio said, shrugging.

Link thanked Ravio before walking over to his cupboard to grab a new pair of tights. He looked back at Ravio, who turned to let Link slip them on.

"So you don't need any bandages on your legs then, I assume?" Ravio said.

"No," Link said, walking back over to Ravio. "They mainly got me across my chest and arms..."

Ravio then got to putting bandages on Link again, starting with a large bandage across the wound on his torso. He went on to cover up the rest of the wounds that still weren't completely healed, Link occasionally twitching in pain if Ravio accidentally touched one too roughly.

"There we go! All done," Ravio said. "So, do you want to go to bed now?"

The orange haired boy nodded and carefully lay on his bed, bringing the covers up. "Can you put out the candles? And where are you sleeping?"

"Well, I normally just sleep on the rug, so I guess I can pull yours—"

"You could sleep in my bed," Link interrupted.

Ravio's eyebrows lifted. He was used to being the interrupter, not the interruptee. "You wouldn't mind?"

Link shook his head. "I'm not gonna make you sleep on the floor."

Ravio put out all the candles, and pushed his hood up to make completely sure that it was pitch black inside now. Upon confirming that he could see nothing, he completely removed his hood. Ravio sat it on the floor, along with his scarf, belt, and shoes. He breathed in the fresh air and sighed happily before carefully making his way to Link's bed and slipping under the covers.

Link rolled over so he was facing Ravio, and carefully put his hand on his cheek. Ravio gulped, suddenly paranoid. What if Link felt that his face was so similar to his, what if maybe he had hero-vision and could see his face in the darkness?

"Why won't you let me see your face?" Link quietly asked.

Ravio giggled, mostly relieved, but his paranoia still lingered at the back of his mind. He set his hand on Link's cheek, lightly brushing his bruised skin with his thumb. "I'm a coward."

"What, you won't let me see your face because you're insecure?"

"Uh, sure, let's go with that."

"I'm not that attractive either, but I still let people see my face."

Ravio laughed. "I think you're very attractive!"

Link's cheeks got hot. "You know, you've been too nice to me today."

"I'm only giving you what you deserve after all you've been put through."

Link rolled over, pressing his back to Ravio's chest and letting Ravio gently wrap his arms around him. "Maybe this is how you can start paying rent," Link said.

Ravio smiled. "I've never been happier to pay rent before now."


	4. Middle School

****And this is the last one that I wrote in January 2014. This one was for a**** ** **self-imposed**** ** **middle school AU**** ** **genre challenge**** ** **. I'**** ** **ve always hated**** ** **school AUs (why put characters in the most boring, typical place imaginable when they live in a world of magic?) but I**** ** **decided to give**** ****one**** ** **a shot anyways. If you'd like to, you can leave suggestions for new oneshot themes/ideas as a review.****

* * *

The first day of middle school was intimidating to most, but Link was a rare exception.

He waltzed right into his new school, small hands clasped around the straps of his backpack, and went to homeroom. The teacher—who was actually Link's adoptive mother—gave him a bright smile and handed him his schedule, and told him where to sit. Link accepted the paper, and looked to where Mrs. Smith was pointing. His desk was in the back row, right next to a boy in a purple hoodie who had his head down. He walked back to his desk and sat in it, tapping the boy next to him on the shoulder.

"Huh?" the boy said, not lifting his head to look at Link.

"I'm Link, who are you?"

"Ravio's the name," he said. "Excited to make new friends, I see?"

"Yup! I've always kinda been a loner, so I'm trying to make a lot of friends this year." Link smiled to himself, messing with the sleeve of his green shirt. "What classes do you have?"

The purple-hooded boy handed over his schedule, still not looking up.

"We have science together first, and art and gym together after lunch," Link said as his eyes darted back and forth from the two papers on his desk.

"Cool! Maybe we can sit together at lunch and then head to class together?" Ravio suggested.

Link happily nodded, only to realize Ravio couldn't see him. "Sure," he said, handing Ravio's paper back over.

The two boys didn't talk to each other as the rest of the new students came in. Two girls came in side by side, one with blonde hair and one with dark indigo hair. The light haired girl was sat beside Link, and the dark haired girl sat in front of Ravio. The one beside Link introduced herself as Zelda, and said that the other girl was her cousin, Hilda.

Science went by fast, and the next class Link had was English. It was quite boring—none of the three kids he talked to in Science were in this class with him. At least in Science he had them to keep him awake by passing notes. In English he began to fell asleep multiple times, only to be yelled at by his teacher. After that class was over, he headed to the lunch room and bought his food before sitting at an empty table. He nibbled mindlessly at his fries as he scanned the cafeteria for his new friends. His face lit up when he saw Ravio and Hilda walking over to him, lunch trays in their hands.

Hilda smiled at him. "Hey, Link."

He smiled back. "Hi. Where's Zelda?"

"She went to the bathroom. She'll be here soon."

"Might take awhile," Ravio said. "The lunch line will probably be super long by the time she gets out."

"What class did you guys have last?" Link asked before he began eating his pizza.

Hilda groaned. " _Math_. _So_ glad it's over."

"I'm glad I didn't have it today. You and Zelda have art and gym next, though, right?" Link asked.

Hilda nodded, and the three babbled on about their schedules until Zelda walked up.

"Lunch is already halfway over, you better hurry and eat," Hilda said as Zelda sat across from her, next to Link.

"I can just eat during rec—" Zelda cut herself off with a sigh. "Guess you're right. But I hear the art teacher is quite nice, so maybe he'll let me eat then."

Zelda soon found out that being nice didn't mean the teacher would let her eat in class. The four kids all sat together again, thanks to there not being a seating arrangement. Their first assignment was to draw a self-portrait.

Link peeked over to Ravio's desk, only to see that Ravio's drawing sure looked a lot like his own. "Hey, uh, you know this is a self-portrait, right? Not a friend-portrait."

Ravio giggled, the large tuft of dark purple hair that fell from his hood bouncing along with his body. "I'm aware, buddy."

Link let out a soft hum before looking back to his own paper. The rest of the class was relatively silent, and then they went to the locker rooms. Link waved to Zelda as she entered the girl's locker room and he entered the boy's. He could tell that Ravio was intimidated by the much bigger boys in there, as he went to get changed facing the corner. Link was hoping he'd get to see Ravio's face then, since he couldn't hide under his hood any longer. Sadly, Ravio left the locker room in his gym outfit, never letting Link or anyone else see his face.

However, he couldn't just stand in the corner of the gym like he could in the locker room. Link gasped as he saw Ravio's face for the first time.

Link quickly ran over to him, and Ravio bit his lip and looked down. "Ravio... What...?"

"Uh, heh heh, hi buddy, how are you?" Ravio scratched the back of his head, peeking up at Link through his thick bang.

"You... Are we related?"

Ravio looked Link in the eyes for the first time. "I really don't know. I was given up as a baby and I don't know who my parents were."

Link frowned. "My parents died when I was a baby."

The rest of gym class consisted of the two boys talking together, not paying any attention to the basketball game they were supposed to be playing. They found out they had the same birthday, but decided that they couldn't be twins, considering their differences in hair and eye color.

They couldn't put their finger on it, they couldn't label themselves as anything. The only thing they knew was that day was the beginning of a great friendship.


	5. Waltzing Among The Stars

_Waltzing Among The Stars – May 13/14_ _2016_ _– 4_ _195_ _words_

 _ _"We're here, Papa!"__

 _ _The little boy, still out of breath from running up the hill, plopped down next to a brown patch of dirt that had some newly planted flowers growing out of it. The pine needles of the hill's single tree slightly obstructed his view, but he didn't really care. The thousands of stars above him made him smile widely. His father caught up a few seconds later and lay back as his son did, on the other side of the dirt patch. The boy looked over at his father, about to excitedly tell him what he was thinking, but his heart dropped in his chest.__

 _ _"Papa?"__

 _ _"Yes, Son?" his father responded, looking at him.__

 _ _The boy turned his head to look back up at the stars, not wanting his dad to see the tears welling up in his eyes. "The stars... They're beautiful tonight..." He choked back the cry that was desperate to escape his throat. "I really wish Mama was here to see them..."__

 _ _His father reached over the dirt patch to lay a hand__ _ _on__ _ _his. "You know, Link, Mama is looking at the stars right now."__

 _ _Link once again looked over at his father, with wonder in his glistening eyes. "Really?! How is she looking at them, Papa?"__

 _ _"They're all around her. She's up there in the sky, waltzing among the stars. When you see the stars twinkle, it's because Mama is dancing with them."__

* * *

From then on, it became a tradition for Link to spend his nights under the tree, looking up at the stars. One night, he noticed a star that was twinkling more than any he'd ever seen. It got closer and closer to Earth—a shooting star. His father had told him that shooting stars were presents, sent out by Link's mother to light up his night. Only, this shooting star was different. As it descended closer to Earth, Link realized that it wasn't a shooting star at all. It was a much cooler present that his mother decided to send his way this time. It was a spaceship!

The spaceship's descent to Earth ended with a bang, right in the middle of a forest near the hill. Link quickly ran out into the forest, wanting desperately to meet whatever creature was inside the ship. He eventually found it in a small clearing. Smoke was billowing around it, and Link heard someone cough. Out of the smoke came a young boy. Link gasped. The other boy looked just like Link, but with dark purple hair, purple clothes, and the occasional stretch of soot on his pale skin. His eyes were squeezed shut.

"Are you okay?!" Link asked as he ran up to the boy. Questioning his appearance could come later. "Did that spaceship land on you?!"

"No, the spaceship is," he opened his green eyes, "...mine..."

"That's your spaceship?" Link asked, part excited and part suspicious.

The other boy nodded, staring intently at his doppelganger. "...You look like me."

Link made a ' _ _pffft__ ' sound. "Obviously. Why focus on us looking alike when you're an __alien__ _?_ That's so cool!"

"I'm called a __Celestial__ ," the boy said.

"Well, I'm called a __Hylian__ _,_ and you're an alien to this planet. What are you doing here?!"

The purple-haired boy quickly looked back at his ship, still lightly letting out puffs of smoke. "I crashed. I didn't mean to come down here."

"My mom didn't send you here to see me?" Link said, frowning.

He shook his head. "I don't know your mom. I was actually out looking for my own..."

Link gasped excitedly. "D-do you think you could take me out on your spaceship with you? We could look for our moms together!"

"Yours isn't here on your planet?"

"No. She's out waltzing among the stars. Please, you have to take me with you so I can find her!"

He grinned and nodded. "I'll help you find your mom!"

Link grinned back and stuck out his hand. "My name's Link, and I'm your new space traveling buddy! What's your name?"

"My name's Ravio!" said he as he shook Link's outstretched hand. "I'll be your new space traveling buddy! ...In the morning, that is. My ship's all broken, if that wasn't already evident. I need some time to fix it. So, you can just go back to your house and get some rest from now. Bring everything you'll wanna take with you when you come back here tomorrow morning! It should be all ready to go by then!"

"Okay! I'll be back! See you in the morning, Ravio!" Link said.

Link ran off back to his house. He jumped into his bed and pulled the covers up in a hurry, wanting the morning to come as soon as possible. He ended up tossing and turning for what felt like hours. He was just so excited that he couldn't sleep, and that said a lot, taking into account his undying love for sleep. Link decided to go ahead and pack his stuff up since he was going to be awake anyways. A telescope, a net, a lamp, some bottles of water, and some bread were among the few things he stuffed into a pouch. He then went over to a desk and scrawled on a piece of paper that he was going out to space to look for his mom, and that his dad shouldn't worry about him. He sat both his pouch and the paper by the door, and retired to his bed. When Link finally fell asleep that night, a smile was on his face. Come the morning light, he was going to dance with his mother.

The sky was still shades of pink when Link clipped his pouch to his belt and ran out his front door. He rushed back into the forest, getting to the clearing in no time. Ravio was rubbing some muck off his spaceship with a rag. The ship was looking much better. Though Link hadn't really gotten to see it before it crashed, he imagined it was back to what it had once looked like.

"I'm back!" Link said.

Ravio jumped, dropping the rag. "Link!" he laughed. He picked the rag back up. "You're really excited to go, aren't cha?"

Link nodded. "I could barely sleep last night!"

"Well, it's a good thing I finished fixing her up nice and early, huh?" Ravio said. "You can go ahead and get in, now!"

Link's heart was beating wildly as he stepped foot into the spaceship. Ravio climbed in after him, tools in hand. He dropped the tools down a cupboard, then sat in the pilot's seat. Link sat down next to him, tapping his fingers on his legs anxiously.

Ravio grinned over at Link. "Ready for takeoff?"

"Ready for takeoff!" Link confirmed.

Ravio pressed a few buttons, and they were off. Link stood up by the window, watching as they slowly got further and further away from the ground. Eventually, he couldn't even make out his house, or the tree on the hill, or any one thing in particular. The world became swirls of white clouds over green and blue.

"I never knew how beautiful Earth was," Link quietly commented. "I can't believe I spent so much time looking out at the stars when the planet I was on was the most beautiful of all..."

Ravio walked up to Link, looking down at Earth with him. "I've always thought your planet was one of the most beautiful... Back when I was really young, my mom and I would always catch the passing comets, and we'd sit on them looking down at Earth together... That's actually why I was nearby, you know. I thought that maybe she was on a comet passing by Earth, but..."

Link put a comforting hand on Ravio's back. "It's all right, Ravio! We'll find her. And we're gonna find my mom, too! Maybe once we've found them, we can all go down to Earth together! I can show you around!"

"That'd be amazing!" Ravio said.

"You bet it'll be! What about your home planet, Ravio? Could you show me it while we're out here?" Link asked.

"I don't have a home planet. I was born on a comet. It already burned out by now, so I can't show you it," Ravio said. Link let out an aw, disappointed. "It's okay! There are plenty of other comets!"

"But doesn't that make you sad? I can't imagine how I'd feel if Earth burned out..."

Ravio shrugged. "It's just a way of life for Celestials. Actually, we think it's really sad that you Hylians spend your whole lives on one planet."

Link thought about it for a few moments. "I guess it is kinda sad... But, well, not all Hylians spend our whole lives on one planet."

Ravio cocked his head. "What Hylians don't?"

"Me!" Link said.

Ravio laughed, and Link started to laugh with him. "I should have seen that one coming," Ravio said through his giggles.

Once they had gotten all of their laughter out, Link looked back through the window. They were much further away from Earth now, and stars were surrounding them. "So, do you think we'll find our moms from just looking out this window as we pass by the stars?"

"Well, we __could__ always do this..."

Ravio went to the control panel, pressed some buttons, and the ship stopped moving. He went back over to Link and got down on his knees, and before Link could ask what he was doing, Ravio pushed up the window. Link rushed backwards, squeezed his eyes shut, and held his hand over his mouth.

"Ravio, that's __outer space!__ " Link shouted. "I-I can't—I'll—it's—!"

"Link, just open your eyes! You'll be fine!"

Link peeked his eyes open, and what he saw made them open wide. Ravio was __outside__ of the ship! The floating boy laughed, but Link didn't think it was funny at all.

"Get back in here, now!" Link said. "I don't care if you're a ' _ _space person__ ,' you can't—!"

"I __can__ ," Ravio said in a sing-song tone. "Assuming you were going to say I can't breathe or survive out here, that is. You can too, Link! If you really couldn't survive in space, then you would have died the second I opened the window. Come out here with me!"

Link slowly walked up to the window. Ravio held his hand out. Link gulped before taking it. With a gentle tug on Ravio's part, Link came right out of the ship. Link's face was contorted in worry for a few moments, but he quickly decided that he liked being out with the stars, completely unaffected by gravity. He felt free as a bird, but more importantly, he felt closer to his mom than ever.

* * *

"I didn't think we'd be out here so long..." Link said.

Ravio's eyebrows furrowed together. "It's only been about a week in Earth days. Besides, I thought you liked it out here!"

"I love it!" Link quickly said. "It's just... I thought that..."

"That what?" Ravio said, prompting Link to continue his unfinished sentence.

"I thought we would have found my mom by now..." he quietly said as he stared out the window. "I don't get it. She's supposed to be out here, so where is she?"

"Link, space is __huge__. Ridiculously huge. I haven't even seen five percent of it, and I've been out here my whole life."

Link sighed and drew his knees up to his chest. "We're never going to find her..."

"Oh, come on, Link!" Ravio said, scooting next to him. "Don't be so hopeless. It might take days, it might take weeks, heck, it might even take __years__ , but we won't stop until we've found your mom."

"But my dad is still down on Earth! I can't just leave him for years! He'll be mad! And I'm starving! I'm all out of food!"

"What would you rather; going home to your dad after a week, without your mom, or going home to your dad after a year, __with__ your mom? I don't think he could be mad at you if you brought her back." Ravio stood up, stopped the ship, and opened the window. "Link, get up! We're near an asteroid!"

Link stood as Ravio grabbed a mallet and chisel from one of the ship's cupboards. Holding them both in one hand, Ravio used his free one to grab Link's hand and pulled him out through the window onto the asteroid.

"What's the mallet and chisel for?" Link asked.

Ravio smiled and got down on his knees. "You'll see!"

Link got down on his knees next to him, and Ravio started to chisel away at the surface of the asteroid. Little colorful bits became visible after a few layers had been chipped away. Ravio continued to dig until hundreds of the colorful things were completely exposed.

"What are they?" Link asked as he picked one of them up.

"They're called starbits. We Celestials mine them from asteroids and comets and eat them." Ravio tossed one in his mouth and hummed in joy. "Try it!"

Link quickly licked the starbit in his hand, wanting to get a taste of it before actually eating it. He was pleasantly surprised by the taste, and promptly threw it into his mouth. "Delicious! It tastes like honey!"

"I don't know what honey is, but I'm glad you Hylians at least have something like starbits to eat! Come on, pick up as many as you can and take them back inside my ship! We'll have food for weeks!"

* * *

Without them constantly orbiting around the sun to properly experience days and nights, Link and Ravio ended up losing track of how much time they had spent together in space. However, judging by how much they'd grown and the feeling in his gut, Link was certain it had been at least two years. Still, there had been no sign of either of their mothers anywhere, or anybody else for the matter.

"Ravio, where are the rest of the Celestials?" asked Link one day. "We've been out here for two years, constantly searching the skies, but you're the only Celestial I've ever seen. Do you guys normally hibernate for years or something?"

Ravio shook his head. "Like I told you, Link, space is huge. There are others like me out here, they're just a long ways away."

"Don't you think we should have passed even just __one__ by now?" Link asked, not satisfied by Ravio's answer.

"We __have__ passed by other Celestials."

"When? The only things I've ever seen outside have been stars, planets, asteroids, comets, and starbits. Not one single person."

"That's because we Celestials don't stay people forever," Ravio said. "We Celestials all share the same destiny; to transform into something else. Some of those planets and stars and comets we've passed by... They used to be people."

"Are you going to become one of those things eventually?" Link asked. He felt his chest tighten at the thought of it. He didn't want to lose his best friend.

"Eventually," Ravio said.

"Oh," Link whispered. "...I'll be really sad when you do."

Ravio threw himself at Link, embracing him tightly. "It'll be okay, Link. I won't do it until after we've found your mom and dropped you back off on Earth... You won't have me anymore, but you'll have both of your parents. That's all you ever wanted, isn't it?"

Link sighed. "I used to think that's all I wanted... But now that I know you, I wish I could have all three of you forever."

* * *

Another year, or at least what felt like another year, passed by, still with no sign of Link or Ravio's moms. Link was going through his pouch when he came across the telescope he had packed in there. Not once on his journey across the universe had he ever used it, but he decided today would be the day he did. He pressed the end up against the window and looked through it.

He didn't see his mom, but what he did see was a planet with white swirls over blue and green. Earth. His home. The planet he hadn't set foot on in three years was a small dot through a telescope already zoomed in hundreds of times over. Link zoomed it in further until he saw a lone tree on a hill.

Link immediately knew that he wasn't seeing just any hill with a tree on it. No, that was the hill that he used to spend every night stargazing on until he fell asleep. It was the hill he used to sled down in the winter. It was the hill he used to have picnics on with his parents. It was the hill he had planted flowers on in front of the tree.

He started to cry.

Ravio rushed over to him. "Link! Wh-what's wrong, what's happening?! Water's coming out of your eyes!"

"Th-they're called t-tears," Link sobbed, his voice high pitched with emotion. "I-I'm crying. Ha-haven't you ever c-cried?"

"No... That must be a Hylian thing." Ravio pulled Link into a hug. "Why are you crying?"

"I'm sad," Link cried into Ravio's shirt.

"I could tell that much," Ravio said. "But why are you sad?"

"Because my mom isn't out there waltzing among the stars! I knew it all along! B-because...!" Link gasped for breath. "She's sleeping under the tree on the hill!"

Ravio didn't know what to say at first, and only hugged Link tighter. "It's okay," was what he ended up settling with.

"No, it's n-not okay!" Link cried. "She's dead!"

Ravio sighed. "You know what, Link? She may not be alive, and she may not be out here, but she's been with you all this time."

Link sniffled. "No sh-she hasn't been! The only time she was w-with me was when I fell asleep next to where she was b-buried!"

"Physically, sure... But she's a part of you. She's always with you, right there in your heart."

Link didn't object to Ravio's statement. He clung closer to his shirt and continued to cry as Ravio rubbed consoling circles on his back.

"A-all this time we've spent looking..." Link said after a while. "Our whole journey... It was w-worthless... __I want to go home!__ "

"Our journey wasn't worthless," Ravio gently said.

"It was," Link whined. "She wasn't out here..."

"That doesn't mean it was worthless... Our journey had a lot of worth. You got to see things no other Hylian has ever seen... We got to become best friends... And it helped me find my destiny."

Link looked up, his eyes red and cheeks stained. "W-what do you mean? How'd it help you find your destiny?"

"Don't you remember what I told you about us Celestials? It's our destiny to transform into something else... I know now what I'm going to transform into."

"What?" Link asked.

Ravio smiled. "I'm going to transform into a comet that'll take you home."

"No!" Link yelled. "No, no! Don't, Ravio, please! You can't! We have your spaceship! Just turn it around!"

"It'll take another three years to get you home on this ship. If I transform into a comet, I can get you back home in a few hours."

Link started to cry harder. "I-I don't care if it'll take another three years! I can't... I can't... I can't lose you, too!"

"You knew we couldn't stay together forever," Ravio said.

"B-but I didn't think you'd transform so soon! And what about your mom? You were looking for her! I-if you transform now, you'll never find her!"

"Link... Do you remember that beautiful blue comet we saw about a year ago?"

Link gasped when he realized what Ravio was saying. "That ... was your mom?"

Ravio nodded and looked away sheepishly. "I never told you because I didn't want you to be jealous that I found my mom and you didn't..." He looked back at Link and smiled. "Once I transform into a comet, I can go be with her."

"But... I'll miss you," Link whimpered.

Ravio placed both hands on either side of Link's face and wiped away his tears with his thumbs. "I'll miss you, too, but you know what? We really will always be together, because I'm a part of you now. I'm in your heart, just like your mom is. And if me being in your heart is ever not enough... Go out to your hill at night and look up at the stars, just like you used to do. Okay?"

Link nodded, and Ravio helped him to his feet. They stood hugging each other, Link crying into the crook of Ravio's neck. Link hugged Ravio so tightly that the boy could barely breathe, but Ravio said nothing of it. Ravio gently pulled away after a few minutes. Link's eyes widened and his jaw dropped.

"Ravio! You're crying! How?"

Ravio gently touched his cheek, and looked at the drop of water that transferred over to his finger. He laughed and grabbed Link's hands. "Who knows? Maybe some of your Hylian-ness rubbed off on me."

"So... This is it," Link said, the words barely getting past his quivering lip.

"This is it," Ravio repeated. "Let's do this outside... I don't think my ship would appreciate me transforming into a comet inside of it."

Link was silent as Ravio lifted the window to his spaceship for the last time. They got out together, and Ravio used the ship to kick himself a bit further away.

"After I transform, just grab onto me, okay? Hold on as tight as you can. I'll stop when we get above your planet, and you can climb down," Ravio said. He sighed. "It's been an amazing three years with you, Link. I can't thank you enough for all the happiness you've brought me. I hope with all of my heart that you can find something or somebody that makes you just as happy back on your planet. And I hope... I hope that maybe, someday, you can join me again up here with the stars."

Ravio closed his eyes, and a heavenly golden light surrounded his body. The light became brighter and brighter until it was all Link could see. When the light faded and Link regained his vision, the Ravio he had come to love was no longer in front of him. A purple comet was in his place.

Just like Ravio had done, Link used the spaceship to kick himself further out, until he could reach the comet. As soon as Link grabbed it, the comet took off. He closed his teary eyes and rested his head against it, holding onto it for dear life.

* * *

Hours later, the comet stopped just above the ground, in the clearing that Link and Ravio had met in.

"You didn't give me the chance to thank you, Ravio... I don't know if you can hear me now, but ... thank you. You were the best space traveling buddy and best friend I could have ever asked for. ...I hope for the same thing as you. I hope someday I can join you again."

Link climbed off the comet. "Goodbye, Ravio," he choked out.

The comet blasted back off into space, leaving Link alone. He hung his head and started his walk back to his house through the forest. He was emotionally drained, and longed to collapse in his bed and sleep for hours upon hours. He couldn't imagine actually being able to sleep in much, though. He knew that the second his dad saw him asleep in his bed, he would be woken up.

Though he was tired, Link decided to stop by the hill. He was surprised when he found his father sitting next to the flower patch.

" _Link!_ " his father yelled.

He ran over and pulled Link into a tight hug. He cried as he held his son. Link hadn't really stopped crying over the past few hours, but he cried harder than he had been a few moments ago in his father's arms.

" _Papa_ ," Link said. "You're not mad at me?"

"I'm so happy to see you again that I couldn't be mad right now," he said through his sobs. "I just want to know __where__ , Link. Where __were__ you?"

Link didn't think that his father would believe the truth, but he told it anyways. "I said in my letter that I was going to look for Mom in space... I did. I know you probably won't believe me, but I was out there, Dad."

His dad pulled away enough to stare into his eyes. "...I believe you. I can tell by your eyes that you're not lying."

Link smiled and hugged his dad closer again. "I was really worried that you wouldn't believe me."

"So...?"

"So what?"

"How did looking for your mom go?"

Link sighed contently. "I found her. She wasn't waltzing among the stars. She was in my heart all along."

The two quieted then, simply enjoying their embrace and each other's presence. Link looked up into the starry sky over his father's shoulder, and he smiled.

A blue and purple comet were soaring by.


	6. Retirement

**Thanks to KaylinElemental15 for the idea to do a oneshot on Ravio's retirement (and for the continued support, I really appreciate it)! It ended up shorter than the others, but I hope you don't mind.  
**

* * *

There were many times during Link's adventure thus far that he would end up finding some secluded place to fall asleep in for the night, but the heavy storm of this particular evening made Link want nothing more to cuddle up in his own bed. Link sat on one end curled up in his blanket, and Ravio sat on the other with a sleeping Sheerow on his shoulder. The two boys were both sipping at warm cups of tea and conversing about anything and everything.

"Don't you think you're kind of young to be retired?" Link curiously asked.

"Being retired just means you're not working anymore," Ravio answered. "You don't have to be old to stop working."

"But what do you even do in your ' _retirement?_ ' Just lounge around on the rug all day thinking about philosophical stuff?"

Ravio scoffed, as if what Link suggested was the most offensive thing he had ever heard. "No! Of course I don't just lounge around thinking!"

Link raised an eyebrow and grinned cheekily, feeling that he had won this one before it started. "So, just what else do you get up to these days, huh?"

"I've been..." Ravio trailed off, trying desperately to think of something. He smiled when he came up with something that he had actually been doing. "Cleaning! Haven't you noticed how luxuriously shiny your floors are, and how clean of dust and grime this place is? Let me answer that for you. No, you haven't noticed."

Link's eyes scanned the house. Though it was slightly hard to tell, the house did appear to be sparkling in the soft orange glow of the fireplace. "Huh. Guess you have been cleaning. Sorry for not noticing. It looks great. Thanks."

Ravio humphed triumphantly. "You're welcome."

"What else, though?" Link asked. "You clean... And...?"

Ravio gulped. He had been expecting Link to drop it. "I... I cook."

"That's like saying you go to the bathroom these days. It doesn't count. Everyone needs to eat to survive."

"It's not just about _eating_ the food, it's about _making it!_ Cooking is no different a hobby than painting, or sculpting. It's _art_ , Mr. Hero."

Link rolled his eyes, smiling nonetheless. "So, what else do you do, besides making _art?_ "

Ravio took a long sip of his tea and swallowed it slowly, using the time to think up something else. "I take care of Sheerow."

"Isn't taking care of him just putting some food and water in bowls for him?"

"Hey now, pets need more than just food and water! They need attention and affection and love..." Ravio suddenly saw an opportunity to casually change the topic, and he went for it. "Have you ever had a pet?"

"No." Link frowned. "My parents never let me have one, and once they died, I just ... got so used to living by myself that I stopped thinking about it."

Ravio returned Link's frown. "Not living by yourself would have been good for you..."

Link shrugged and turned his head. "I liked living by myself."

"Oh," Ravio quietly said.

He felt terrible. It was bad enough that he had visibly upset Link, but Link's words cut him deep. Link enjoyed living by himself... And now Ravio was living with him.

"...Do you want me to leave?" Ravio asked after a few silent moments.

Link looked back over at him, slightly tilting his head. " _What?_ Why?"

"You said you liked living by yourself..."

" _Liked_ ," Link said. "Past tense."

"I know what past tense is. You lived alone in your past, so you used past tense. I'm not an idiot."

"Not as in _I lived alone_ in the past, but as in _I used to like it_ in the past." The corners of Link's lips raised just the smallest bit. "I like living with you."

"R-really?" Ravio asked, grinning widely under his hood.

Link nodded. "Why wouldn't I? It's nice to come home after a day of adventuring and have someone here."

Ravio sighed in relief and rested against the wall to his side. "Good. I really thought, what with you getting at me not doing anything all day, and you saying that, that you didn't want me here." He laughed. "I was nervous."

"Well, you had nothing to be nervous over," Link said with a smile. "...But you did just admit that you do nothing all day, didn't you?"


	7. Reunited

It had been fourteen years since Lorule's Triforce was restored, fourteen years since Link had seen Ravio. He had long since accepted that being reunited was never going to happen, but that didn't stop him from thinking about Ravio.

He wondered what Ravio looked like now that he was twenty-six. Link, himself, had grown ten inches, lost his baby fat and gained muscle, and red hairs grew on his face. Given that they were counterparts, he imagined that Ravio had changed in the same ways that he had—albeit with purple facial hair, if he kept it—but he still found it interesting to think about. He also wondered what Ravio had gotten into in Lorule; if he continued being a merchant, or if he went down a path similar to the one Link had. Link had been Knighted, joined and rose in the ranks of the army, married Queen Zelda, and became the father to the new Prince of Hyrule, Ravio.

Most of all, Link wondered if his old friend ever thought about him.

" _ _Don't be so silly, of course he still thinks about you!__ " Zelda would say whenever Link brought it up.

Link wished he was as certain as she was. Surely it would be easy for Ravio to get so caught up in restoring his country that Link could slip right out of his mind. It would even be a lie for Link to say that there weren't a few days he went without thinking of Ravio over the last 5000-something days, especially in the more recent ones. Being a consort and a father was time-consuming.

"At least you think about me every day, don't you, little guy?" Link said, running a loving hand through his two-year-old son's strawberry blond locks.

"I see Papa every day!" Ravio said.

There was a knock at the door of Ravio's bedroom. Link huffed. Couldn't he have some alone time with his son?

"Come in!" Link said anyways.

The door opened, revealing a guard. He stepped into the room and bowed. "Your Majesty..."

"The formalities aren't needed," Link said for what felt like the thousandth time. Being called such titles still made him feel strange. "Call me Link."

"Link..." the guard said, sounding rather uncomfortable with it. "Your presence is requested by a visitor."

"A visitor?" Link said. He got to his feet, picking up Ravio. "I didn't have any meetings scheduled today. Isn't Zelda having one right now?"

"Yes, the Queen is currently having a meeting, but the guest who requested to see you is not here for a formal meeting, Your Ma—" the guard stopped himself. He cleared his throat. "Link, if you would follow me..."

Link followed the guard through the castle, feeling relieved that he wasn't headed to a formal meeting. He wasn't comfortable going to them yet without Zelda by his side. The fact that the guard was letting him take Ravio along said that it wasn't going to be formal at all, making Link feel even better. It was probably going to be one of his friends, he thought. Gulley or Irene, most likely. They both had a knack for showing up unannounced.

"Papa, let me walk!"

Ravio's call brought Link out of his thoughts. Link obliged, putting Ravio down. Ravio wrapped his chubby fingers around Links, and they continued their way through the castle. They finally came to a stop outside of the living room. The guard held the door open, allowing Link and Ravio inside before gently closing the door behind them.

Link's eyes were immediately drawn to someone wearing purple, crouched down on the floor, back towards him. The purple-haired man looked over his shoulder. His green eyes met Link's blue ones. Link felt like he was going to pass out.

"Happy to see me again, buddy?" Ravio asked, his voice much deeper than it had once been.

He laughed as he stood up and walked towards Link. Link could only stare at him in shock. Despite how correct Link's guesses were as to what the grown-up Ravio would be like, he still couldn't believe it. It was like the Ravio in his mind had never truly aged, staying the same twelve-year-old, but there the twenty-six-year-old Ravio was in the flesh.

"Am I so handsome that you have no words left?" Ravio said with a cheesy grin.

Link breathlessly laughed, and practically threw himself at Ravio, hugging him tightly. "How did you get here?!" Link asked, words muffled by Ravio's scarf.

"I found a fissure deep in Skull Woods, and I had enough magic power saved up from over the years to get us through it," he answered.

' _ _Us__ '? Who was ' _ _us__ '? Did Hilda come, too? And if there was another fissure connecting their worlds, did that mean that something bad was about to happen again? Link decided to ignore these thoughts for now. Ravio was back, and that was all that mattered then. He sighed happily.

"I never thought I'd see you again," Link said. "I've missed you so much, Ravio!"

"But I been right here, Papa!" Link's son said.

"' _ _Papa__ '?" Ravio pulled out of Link's hug and looked down. He let out a laugh. "You have a son!"

Link quickly bent down and picked him up. "Ravio, meet Ravio!"

The older Ravio put a hand over his heart. "You-you really named him after me?"

"Of course I did!" Link said.

"I'm honored! It would have been super awkward if I named my son after you and you didn't name yours after me." He looked behind him. "Come here!"

Link drew his eyebrows together, and leaned over. Behind Ravio was a little boy that would have been completely identical to Link's son if it weren't for his dark indigo hair and green eyes. After the boy had slowly walked forward, Ravio picked him up.

"Sorry, Link's a bit shy at first," Ravio said. "His name's a perfect fit, isn't it?"

"How old is he?" Link asked, smiling widely.

"Just turned two on July 13th. What about your boy?"

Link laughed. "Just turned two on July 13th!"

"Should've guessed that," Ravio said through his laughter. "Oh, let me guess, you married Zelda?"

Link nodded, and Ravio held his hand up for a high five. Link happily gave him one. "And I guess you married Hilda, then, Ravio?"

"That would be Ravio, King Consort of Lorule to you!" he said over-dramatically. He looked at his son with a smile. "Isn't that right, Prince Link?" The toddler buried his face in his father's neck.

"I'm surprised that you were capable of fathering a child with the ability to be quiet," Link said.

Ravio nearly snorted. "Trust me, he never shuts up at home. Ever. He's only acting like this because he's never met you. I think the trip through the fissure still has him a bit out of his element, too."

"Are you not a little bit worried about the fissure?" Link asked with a frown. "Last time, they started appearing because of Yuga forcing our worlds together... Do you think that he could be...?"

Ravio shrugged. "I guess we'll have to wait and see if anything comes of it. For now, we should just be thankful that we're getting to see each other again. We shouldn't be worrying about it when we have so much to catch up on!"

Link nodded in agreement, but the worrier in him couldn't let him completely relax. "It should still be cause for concern, though..."

"Pfft! The only one who should be concerned is Yuga if he comes back." Ravio grinned. "If he lost last time to one little boy, imagine how quick he'd lose to two grown men!"


	8. Confessions of a Sleep Singer

**Finally back with a new oneshot! It really doesn't feel like it's been sixth months since I updated. 2016 has went by so fast. Anyways, I finally finished this one that I started way back in June.**

* * *

On the list of reasons why Link hated having to go back and forth between Lorule and Hyrule, the fact that their days and nights were opposite was steadily creeping up. It was because of that that he was awake in his house at an hour no person should ever be awake at. He probably could have been in Lorule right then, working to further progress his quest, but he needed a break; he could only take so much of Lorule at a time. He was more than happy to be in his own home, even if he did feel a bit weird being the only person awake there. Ravio was sleeping on his bed, and Sheerow was asleep in a cage next to it. The only sounds Link heard were the crackling of his fireplace and Ravio's quiet snores. It was actually quite relaxing. Link could feel his eyelids getting heavier...

" _Many years ago_..."

Link's head snapped up, and his eyes shot over to Ravio. Was he ... singing in his sleep?

" _I felt so free..._ "

He was! Link suppressed the giggle that was daring to escape him, not wanting to wake Ravio up. His slurred, gentle singing of the somehow familiar song was absolutely endearing. His voice was smooth, velvety, nothing like the scratchy voice he put on during the day. For whatever reason, Ravio tried to hide his real voice when he was awake—he probably thought Link couldn't tell it was fake, but he could—so it was nice to get a taste of it. Link walked over to his bed to hear it better.

" _Thought I chose the thief's life ... but it really chose me..._ "

Link's eyebrows drew together. When he thought the song was familiar at first, he brushed it off, but now he realized why it was familiar. He had heard a man singing it in Thieves' Town. In _Lorule_. How had _Ravio_ heard it?

" _Every time I say I'm a-leavin' ... this accursed life ... sends me ... right back to..._ "

"Ravio!" Link said, shaking him. "Wake up!"

Ravio grumbled, then suddenly jolted in Link's bed, letting out a squeal. He quickly cleared his throat. "M-Mr. Hero! You scared me! Don't do that again!"

"How did you hear that song?" Link asked.

"That ... song?"

"Yeah, the one you were singing in your sleep."

"I was singing it my sleep?!" Ravio said. Link could hear the embarrassment in his voice. "Why didn't you wake me up sooner! That's so—!"

"You don't need to be embarrassed," Link interrupted. "You sounded fine. I just want to know where you heard that song from."

"Uh..." Ravio reached a hand up under his hood to rub the back of his head. "I remember singing in my dream... But I don't remember which song..."

"The song about feeling free many years ago, the thieves' life, trying to leave it," Link rattled off. "That one."

"That song?" Ravio said. "...Does it really matter where I heard a song from anyways?"

"Yeah, I want to know!" Link said.

Ravio sat up in his bed. "All right, all right, calm down... It's a song I heard growing up. Why do you care so much about it that you felt the need to wake me up?"

"Ravio," Link firmly said, "I heard that song in _Lorule_."

"O-okay, and? You said Hyrule and Lorule are like, parallel worlds, didn't you?" Ravio said, his voice shaky. "Who's to say a song there couldn't also be a song here?"

"I'd never heard that song in my life before going to Lorule."

"I'm sorry, I didn't know you knew every song that's ever been sung in Hyrule. That's really cool! Maybe instead of being Mr. Hero you should be called Mr. Knower-Of-All-Songs!"

Link crossed his arms. "Ha. I'm laughing."

"Is that a song title?"

Link groaned in frustration. "Why can't you just tell me the truth, Ravio?"

"What truth? You asked me how I knew that song, and I told you I grew up with it. That _is_ the truth."

"No, I didn't ask you how you knew it. I asked you _where you heard it from_. Does _Thieves' Town_ ring a bell?"

The purple-clad boy gulped. "You... You said that's a town in Lorule..."

"Ravio..."

"Fine!" he said, throwing his hands up. "I'm from Lorule! Are you happy?"

Link sighed, sitting down next to Ravio on his bed. "Yes, I'm happy. I just... I want to know why you tried to keep it a secret from me. If you had told me, then you could have helped me out! You could've given me advice on what to look out for, where things are..."

"I was scared," Ravio whispered.

"What'd you say?"

"I was scared!"

Link looked at Ravio confusedly. "Why would you be scared of me knowing you're from Lorule?"

"Because I... I..." He gulped. "I don't want you to know who I am," he said quietly.

"... _Why?_ " was all Link could ask.

Ravio looked away. He didn't know how to answer without further revealing himself. To him, it seemed like it should have been so, _so_ painfully obvious already that he was Link's counterpart. One more shred of information could be enough for Link to put all the pieces together.

Link waited silently for a few seconds before he got up. Ravio asked him what he was doing, but Link opted to show rather than tell. One by one, he lit all of the candles in his house. When his house was illuminated, Link sat back down next to Ravio.

"Tell me who you really are. I won't judge you. I don't even care if you were the biggest thief in Lorule," Link said.

"I'm not telling you who I really am. I've already told you too much," Ravio said, shaking his head. "...But I will say that I was never a thief. I may have spent a lot of time in Thieves' Town growing up, but I was always above stealing. Everything I have, I rightfully got."

Link pursed his lips as he questioned what to say next. "...If you won't tell me who you really are, could you at least let me hear your real voice?"

"This is my real voice," Ravio answered in a hurry.

"I'm not an idiot."

Ravio felt the urge to just spit it all out already bubbling up inside of him. He suspected that Link was onto him, that Link wanted to hear his real voice to confirm that it was exactly the same as his.

He came up with the perfect excuse not to speak with his true voice. "You already heard me sing," Ravio said. "Isn't that enough?"

"Isn't everything I've given you enough for you to just tell me who you are? Don't I deserve to know who I've been letting live in my house for months? Don't I deserve to know who all of my hard earned money is going to?"

"You _know_ me, Link. It's just..."

"Just what?"

Ravio's fists balled up, his lips pressed together in a tight line that Link couldn't see. The pressure was too much. He couldn't hide it anymore.

He ripped his cowl off, dark purple hair flying everywhere as he did so, and blue eyes met green eyes. Link's mouth fell open, but no words came out. A wave of relief washed over Ravio. His secret was finally out. He could stop hiding.

But as Link continued to stare in shock, eyes drinking in each and every feature on the face identical to his, Ravio started to worry again. What would Link think of him now? Surely all the dots were connecting in his head. Would he be mad that the should-be Hero of Lorule fled, forcing Link to take on a role that should have never been his?

"You're ... _me_ ," Link finally said under his breath.

"Took you that much time staring at me to figure it out?" Ravio said, using his real voice for the first time in months. It was so weird, hearing a voice say something and the exact same voice respond, but knowing the words were coming from two separate people.

"No, it's just..." Link trailed off. "I don't understand...?"

"What don't you understand?" Ravio asked.

"Why you didn't want me to know that you're my counterpart."

"You really don't know? There's absolutely no reason you can think of that I would hide it from you?" Ravio asked. Link shook his head, and Ravio sighed. " _I'm_ supposed to be the Hero of Lorule, but you're the one that is. All because I'm a coward."

Link pondered Ravio's words. "...Do you feel guilty?"

Ravio sheepishly nodded. "Every time I see you leave... Every time you come back home all beat up with blood on you... I feel so guilty," he admitted. "I'm sorry, Link. I'm so sorry. I really, really am."

"Well... How about we do something to get rid of your guilt?" Link said. Ravio just raised an eyebrow. "I still have two more Sages to save... Help me save them."

Ravio opened his mouth to object, but Link cut him off. "Come on, Ravio. Be the Hero you were born to be. If Lorule's history is the same as Hyrule's, then think of all the past Heroes who fought to save it. _Your_ ancestors. Don't let them down. Let's save Lorule together."

Ravio fiddled with the trim of his belt, weighing the situation in his mind. Link's words rung through his thoughts. Lorule did have past Heroes just like Hyrule. They had fought valiantly for their country. He could imagine them up in heaven somewhere looking down on him and shaking their heads at his cowardice.

More importantly, he imagined Hilda, the reason he came to Hyrule. Above all else, he wanted her to be saved. He _needed_ her to be saved. And Ravio was the one supposed to save her.

"Let's save Lorule together."


	9. Hero's Day

****I've never been too crazy for real-world AUs, but I needed some Christmasy Ravioli goodness in my life, so I decided to borrow a concept from my other Zelda fic for this oneshot—Hyrule's equivalent of Christmas, Hero's Day. Merry Christmas everyone!****

* * *

Link let out a relieved sigh as he finally approached the little hill that led up to his house. It was the middle of winter, and while he always thought Hyrule was at its most beautiful when it was graced with snow, he couldn't wait to get inside his house and eat some steaming soup to warm himself up.

He skidded to a stop when he looked up at his house. A decorated wreath was hung on his door, and garland was strung over his gutters and around Ravio's sign. Link let out a small laugh, the breath from his mouth clouding the cold air.

When he opened his door, Ravio jumped up and said, "Happy Hero's Day!"

Ravio's supplies had been pushed out of the way, and the interior of Link's house was decked out just like the exterior. Along the back wall was a large tree with ornaments and garland from top to bottom. The last time Link had a Hero's Day like this was ... when he was a little kid, when his parents were still alive, he realized. The blacksmith and his wife always invited him to their Hero's Day celebrations after his parents passed, but they were never as festive as his parents or Ravio.

"Happy Hero's Day to you too, Ravio!" Link said, smiling widely. "I almost forgot about it this year. And I can't believe you decorated so much!"

"I want you to have the happiest Hero's Day ever, Mr. Hero! After all, the day is dedicated to you and your ancestors."

Link paused; he hadn't considered that yet. Hero's Day was started to celebrate a Hero—a past incarnation of Link—who defeated evil on a December 25th thousands of years ago. The tradition grew over time with each new Hero who saved Hyrule. Link, though he hadn't yet won, was next in the line of Heroes. Even after he got the Master Sword, not once did he consider that he was among them. He should have felt a surge of pride at realizing this, but instead he felt inadequate. He didn't think he was worthy of even being mentioned in the same sentence as the ancient Heroes.

"Didn't think about that yet?" Ravio said, pulling Link out of his self-deprecating thoughts.

Link shook his head, and finally took off the thick winter tunic he had put on over his normal one, along with his scarf, boots, and gloves. He was going to say, ' _ _Why__ would __I have thought about it when I don't even consider myself a Hero?__ ' but decided to spare himself the argument he knew would ensue with the boy who always called him Mr. Hero instead of his actual name.

"Ooh, can't forget, I got you a present, Mr. Hero!" Ravio chirpily said. "Well, made you a present, actually."

"You ... did?" Link asked.

Presents weren't just for anybody. Since it was Hero's Day, after all, presents were to be given to people who were heroes in your life. Link knew how Ravio viewed him, but the fact that Ravio had actually gotten— _ _made__ —him a present made his heart swell. He had never gotten a present before on Hero's Day.

"Of course I did!" Ravio said. "You're my hero, Mr. Hero."

Link's cheeks were already red from the cold, but they became redder. "Ravio, you really didn't have to do all this..."

"Yeah I did!" Ravio excitedly said.

He grabbed a messily-wrapped present from under Link's bed, then sat down next to the tree and tapped the floor to motion for Link to sit down too. Before Link was even fully sitting on the floor, Ravio was shoving the present into his hands.

"From yours truly," Ravio said. "I hope you like it. I worked really hard on it..."

"Not on the wrapping though, huh?" Link teased.

"Hey, I tried my hardest! Why don't __you__ try wrapping something shaped like that?"

Link was all smiles as he tore the wrapping paper off his present. It was a block of wood that had a painting of himself and Ravio together on it.

"I had no idea what to get you, and I didn't want to be spending money on something you wouldn't want or use... Well, I could have just left out everything I said after __spending money__ , but the point stands," Ravio said. "And... Whenever I end up leaving here, at least you can have that in memory of our friendship. Do you like it?"

A mix of emotions came over Link. He thought that Ravio giving him his gift was the sweetest, kindest thing anyone had done for him in years, and he felt touched. Amidst his gratefulness, though, was sadness. Ravio's words suggested that there would be finality in his leaving, that whenever he closed up his shop he'd never see Link again. Link had to remind himself that it was Hero's Day, and he could be sad about Ravio leaving another day.

"I love it! It's—it means a lot to me, really," Link said, feeling his voice nearly break. "Thanks."

"You're welcome! That reminds me, I've got something else for you..."

Before Link could ask what it was, Ravio pulled Link into a tight hug. Link's cheeks got even hotter.

"Thank you, Link. Thank you so much, for everything," Ravio said.

"What are you—wh-why?" Link stuttered.

"Nobody has ever thanked you for anything throughout your journey, have they?"

As Link thought back, he realized that Ravio was right. He had never been thanked for anything. It never bugged him, though, because he did good deeds out of the good of his heart, not just to be thanked.

But stars above, did finally hearing those two little words make him feel warm and fuzzy inside.

"Thank __you__ , Ravio," Link said, wrapping his arms around him and resting his head on his shoulder.

"You're supposed to say ' _ _You're welcome, Ravio__.'"

Link chuckled. "You're welcome, Ravio, but thank you, too. I really appreciate everything you've done for me."

"Well, everything I've done for you is the least I could do after all you've done for me, and for everyone else in both Hyrule and Lorule. Happy Hero's Day, Mr. Hero. Now put your winter clothes back on! We have to go build snowmen!"


	10. Game Over - Part 1

**Here's another one I started way too long ago (in May 2016 this time). This one actually inspired the end of Confessions of a Sleep Singer, which in turn inspired me to come back and finish this. Enjoy :)**

* * *

It started out like any other day.

Ravio woke up first. The smell of the food he cooked woke Link up. Link ate some, but barely finished it before rushing out the door. Ravio opened up his shop, even though he rarely got any business aside from Link. He figured he'd spend the day lounging around the house, not doing much at all, except for waiting for Link to come home so he could at least have someone to talk to.

He had just finished having his lunch when Sheerow started chirping wildly and flailing about.

"What is it, pal?" Ravio asked. "What's wrong?"

Sheerow flew over to the door and beckoned Ravio to follow him with a chirp. Ravio felt nervous as he walked over. As soon as he opened the door, his bird flew out of it. Ravio shut the door and flipped the sign on it over to say that his shop was closed, and ran after Sheerow. The white bird flew to Kakariko Village, leading him to the back of the house closest to the woods. Ravio felt his chest constrict.

Collapsed just in front of a fissure in the wall was none other than Link, covered in so much blood that he was barely recognizable.

"He can't be," Ravio whispered. "He ... can't!"

He got down next to Link on the ground and flipped his mangled body over. Ravio nearly vomited at the sight of Link's disfigured face. He stared at Link's chest, hoping that maybe, just maybe, it would rise and fall just the slightest bit, but it didn't. With each second of Link not moving that passed, Ravio's heart rate increased and tears welled up in his eyes more, but he took notice of neither of those things. The only thing on his mind was the fact that Link was...

" _No_ ," Ravio nearly growled. "No, you're not!"

He picked Link up as well as he could, which was barely picking him up at all, and dragged his body around to the front of the building. He rapped his knuckles on the door as loud as he could in quick succession. The house belonged to that wise old man—Rahasasla or Saharsala or _whatever_ , it didn't matter—whom Ravio prayed would have a Fairy on hand to use on Link.

The old man opened the door, mouth dropping immediately. Before he could say anything, Ravio cried out " _Fairy_." It wasn't the question, ' _Do you have a Fairy?_ '—it was a demand, ' _Give me a Fairy_.'

"I'm—I'm afraid I don't have one," Sahasrahla said, worry in his raspy voice. "Bring him to a Great Fairy Fountain! Now!"

"Where?!" Ravio asked.

Sahasrahla gave quick directions to Ravio and told him that he would catch up to him, and then Ravio was off. He felt adrenaline rushing through his pounding veins, giving him the power to properly hold Link and run as fast as he could. By the time he made it to the fountain, his arms and legs were burning. He fell to his knees, panting, with Link in his lap.

" _Help_ ," he pleaded to the Great Fairy.

The Great Fairy flew down to him and waved her wand over Link's body. Ravio's eyes darted to and fro over Link's body, looking for any sign that her magic was working. Her arm recoiled, and Ravio looked up at her. Though tears impeded his vision, he could tell that the look on her face was one of remorse.

"I'm ... sorry," she said. "It's too late."

She continued speaking, explaining how even Great Fairies like herself could only bring one back to life within a very short time of the heart stopping, but none of her words registered in Ravio's mind. Her voice was nothing more than background noise. Nothing she said mattered. Link was dead.

The Great Fairy had already shrunk away into the pure water of her fountain by the time Sahasrahla had walked into the cave, but he knew what she had said by Ravio's cries. Sahasrahla, though he would never admit it, felt like crying himself. He had known Link since he was just a baby, but even putting his own personal feelings for the boy aside, he knew that Link's death would bring forth the world's demise, and that was more than deserving of tears.

Sahasrahla slowly approached Ravio, and knelt down on the floor beside him. He placed a hand gently on Ravio's shoulder in an attempt to soothe him. Ravio shrugged it off and hunched over Link's body, crying into his bloodied clothes.

Sahasrahla let out a sigh. "We should hold a funeral for him."

Ravio didn't say anything, but in his mind, he screamed ' _No_.' A funeral meant this was all real.

"...Leave Link here, and let me take care of everything," Sahasrahla said. "I'll find you when everything is prepared. Go. Let yourself grieve some."

Ravio's fingers curled into fists, his nails clawing into his palms so hard that he wouldn't have been surprised to find crescent-shaped cuts there. He laid Link down on the stone before the fountain, and ran outside the cave without looking back. He didn't stop running until he got inside Link's house. Sobs wracked his body as he fell over against the door and slid down it.

' _It's_ _all_ _my fault._ '

Bile rose in Ravio's throat, and he just barely got his cowl off before it came out onto the floor. He had the urge to slam his head into the door, again and again and again until he was no longer conscious. Resisting the temptation, he scooted back until he was in the corner of the house, and curled in on himself.

' _I killed Link._ '

* * *

When Sahasrahla knocked on Link's door, Ravio still hadn't moved from the corner. Sahasrahla let himself in, stepping over the vomit that still sat unattended to on the wooden floor.

"Ravio..." The boy didn't respond. "It's not quite time for the funeral yet. I'd like your opinion on something." Sahasrahla waited for some sort of acknowledgment, but continued on when he figured he wasn't going to get any. "...It's customary to bury people with the thing they treasured most in life. I've known Link since he was born, and he never showed any materialism to me. I was wondering if, perhaps, since you have spent more time with him these past months than I, you knew of something to bury him with..."

Ravio tried to think of something. He was stumped. Link had never seemed materialistic to Ravio, either. In truth, however, the reason Ravio was stumped was that he could only imagine Link in a casket. ...Wearing green.

"His—his tunic," Ravio hiccuped out. "A-and hat. The g-green ones, n-not... Not the blue."

"Ahh," Sahasrahla said. He nodded to himself. "The boy did always have an affinity for his greens... Do you know where they are?"

Ravio wiped his face on his sleeves before getting up and walking to Link's wardrobe with his head down. He felt wrong as he opened it, but he did anyways. He pulled out the green hat and tunic that Link had put aside when he found his blue set.

Ravio's eyebrows drew together when he brought the items of clothing over to Sahasrahla, who was making a surprised face at him. He wanted to tell the old man to shut up, even though he hadn't said anything. Ravio couldn't help it if his eyes were bloodshot or if tears stained his cheeks or if snot dripped from his nose. He shoved the clothes forward again when it seemed that Sahasrahla was in a trance staring at his face.

"Thank you ... Ravio..." Sahasrahla cleared his throat and accepted the clothes. "Shall ... we go?"

His stunted speech angered Ravio further. "I _know_ I look bad," Ravio said, his voice breaking. "You don't have to be so rude about it."

"I wasn't..." Sahasrahla trailed off and shook his head, mouth slack. "I'll speak to you of it later. Would you come with me and help me finish the preparations?"

Ravio nodded, even though he really didn't want to see any more of Sahasrahla and just wanted to be left alone to cry and hate himself more. Ravio's cowl that he had never gone outside without in Hyrule stayed on the floor forgotten as the two left the house.

His heart rate sped up again as they neared the church, knowing that Link's dead body was in there. He closed his eyes and followed Sahasrahla inside, only opening his eyes when he walked right into Sahasrahla. Ravio mumbled that he was sorry. Sahasrahla moved to the side, no longer blocking Ravio's vision. Ravio felt his entire body tense and freeze up when he saw Link's body in a casket.

It took everything in him not to completely break down again. Ravio didn't know how Sahasrahla did it, but somehow, Link was no longer mangled or covered in blood. He looked serene; like he was just taking a quick nap.

Except he wasn't just taking a quick nap. Link would never wake up again.

Ravio didn't realize that he was vocalizing as he began to bawl again until Sahasrahla looked back at him and told him he could have a seat at a pew where Link wasn't visible if that would make him more comfortable. Ravio wanted to do as Sahasrahla offered, but he found that he couldn't make himself move. It was like his blurry eyes were glued to Link. Even when Sahasrahla blocked the sight of Link's body again as he changed the boy into his green clothing, Ravio couldn't move his eyes.

His world was crumbling down around him, yet he could do nothing but stand there.

Link—though Ravio couldn't see him that well—looked much better in his green tunic, but he didn't look complete when Sahasrahla moved away. The old man had removed his baldric that had the Master Sword attached to it.

"Why?" Ravio squeaked out. He was too devastated to even feel embarrassed about his voice.

"Why what?" Sahasrahla asked.

"His sword..."

Sahasrahla laid the sword down next to some brown blob on the floor. Ravio couldn't make himself look at it to determine what exactly it was. "I realized that he can't be buried with it," Sahasrahla answered.

"Why not?" Ravio pushed. "I-it doesn't matter. The world is doomed w-whether he's buried with it or not."

Ravio couldn't make out what Sahasrahla mumbled in response. " _I disagree_."

* * *

Ravio wanted to scream as Link's casket was closed. The urge doubled when it was placed into the ground. It tore at his throat, begging to be let out. He just needed to scream and never stop screaming until the world met its inevitable end.

Arms wrapped around Ravio, drawing him out of his stupor. Though he couldn't see her face because his was shoved right into her chest, he recognized her as the blacksmith's wife from her voice.

"I don't know who you are," she cried, "but— _oh_ , you look just like him!"

It was only then that Ravio realized everyone had seen his face, including Sahasrahla, which he figured was the true reason why the old man had been so shocked earlier. Ravio had just been too grief-stricken to think about it.

" _Brenda_ ," a deep, raspy voice said. It was the blacksmith. "Leave that poor boy alone... Let's go home."

The blacksmith's wife pulled away from Ravio, cupped both hands around his face, and stared deeply into his eyes. Ravio felt his heart break further looking at her, if that were possible. He knew that she was like a mother to Link, and that her son was one of the Sages. Not only had she lost her own biological son, but now she was losing her honorary one. She choked out a cry as she let go of Ravio and went into her husband's arms.

After Ravio watched them walk away, he realized that he, Sahasrahla, the priest, and the gravekeeper were the only people left standing outside. Everyone who had shown up for the funeral had already left, and the sun was setting behind on horizon.

The priest and Sahasrahla ended up going inside the church, leaving just him and the gravekeeper, who started to shovel dirt over Link's casket. Grief flooded over Ravio again as he watched the dirt pile up more and more until there was no more to be seen of Link's casket, until the ground was level once more. The gravekeeper sauntered off, his job done.

Sahasrahla came back outside then. He held the sheathed Master Sword in one hand, and Link's pouches in the other. "I would like to have a word with you, Ravio..."

"About _what?_ " Ravio said. He sounded much harsher than he intended, but he didn't particularly care.

"Link spoke to me of Lorule... Of how their people were our people, yet different. ...You are Lorule's Link, are you not?"

Ravio only nodded in response, not saying what he truly wanted to say; his identity didn't matter, not when Link was dead.

"Then perhaps the world shall not meet its demise after all," Sahasrahla said.

"Wh-what are you..." Ravio sniffled and wiped his nose on his purple sleeve for the millionth time that day, "...trying to imply?"

"Ravio, do you not see? You— _you_ —are our last hope."

"But—!"

"You are Link," Sahasrahla cut him off.

"No, I'm not Link! Link is _dead!_ " As those previously unspoken words left his mouth for the first time, a sob involuntarily escaped him.

"And because he is, you must act in his stead. There is no other choice; only you are suitable to take his place."

"I'm _not_ ," Ravio said, looking back down at Link's fresh grave. "I'm—I can't...! Th-the entire reason I came to Hyrule, was—was because I _can't!_ That's why I got Link!"

" _Ravio_ ," Sahasrahla said sternly. When he said nothing more after that, Ravio looked back at him. "The situation we have been caught in is one of life or death," he went on. "If you refuse to finish what Link started, then life shall no longer be a possible outcome."

"But I'll die, too," Ravio whimpered quietly.

Sahasrahla sighed. "There is a _chance_ of you dying if you try, but there is a _guarantee_ of you dying if you _don't_. Which will it be? Certain death to you and two whole kingdoms ... or a possible death, while if you live, the other outcome will be life for all?"

When it was put like that, Ravio knew what the obvious choice was, but that didn't calm his fears. If anything, it aggravated them more, because what if he tried and fell? Then the destruction of both Hyrule and Lorule would rest solely on his shoulders. And if _Link_ couldn't even make it out alive, what were the chances of _him_ making it out alive?

"...Take the Master Sword."

"I can't...!" Ravio didn't finish his sentence. The look Sahasrahla was giving him was enough to cut him off.

He grabbed the sword by its sheath and took it away from Sahasrahla. Ravio's fingers wrapped around the hilt of the Master Sword, and he slowly pulled it out. When it was fully removed, Ravio held it before him, its tip pointed towards the heavens. A flash of light came over the sword, and when it faded, the metal glowed a faint blue.

"The sword has accepted you as its master. This confirms everything. You must save Hyrule and Lorule!"

Ravio gulped. He looked down at Link's grave, and the pace at which tears rolled down his cheeks sped up again.

"...But you are not ready just yet," Sahasrahla said. "You need time to grieve, and you must practice with the sword before you set off with it. Yet, we don't have forever..." He sighed. "The night is drawing near. I must head home, Ravio. Come speak to me tomorrow."

Ravio nodded, and Sahasrahla handed him Link's pouches before walking away. Once he was all alone, Ravio dropped to his knees at the end of Link's grave. He sat the pouches on the ground and placed the Master Sword across his lap.

"I'm so sorry, Link," Ravio whispered. "I'm sorry that I didn't do what I should have from the start. I'm sorry that you're dead because of me. I can't change the past... I can't bring you back... But I'm going to try my hardest to make up for everything I've ruined."

He was terrified, but he knew he had to do it. For Hilda. For Zelda. For Lorule. For Hyrule.

For Link.

Ravio brushed his fingers gently over the blade of the Master Sword—the sword that had once belonged to Link, and all of Link's heroic ancestors. He wrapped his fingers around the hilt again and closed his eyes.

So quietly that Ravio wasn't sure he'd truly heard anything, a voice whispered to him. ' _Master..._ '


	11. Game Over - Part 2

****So, this chapter focuses on Ravio after he took Link's place instead of both Ravio and Link as normal, but after I finished Game Over, I realized that I wanted a sequel, so here's part 2 anyways! Suggestions** **for future oneshots** **still welcome.****

 **September 2018 update – So, I've been devoting my time mostly to my other story, since these stories are technically all complete on their own. I still have some ideas up my sleeves, and quite a few beginnings of new ones written out, I'm just not sure when I'll get around to finishing them. As I said above, suggestions continue to be welcome, even if it might take awhile for me to get to them!**

* * *

He made it. After months of blood, sweat, pain, and tears—lots and _lots_ of tears—Ravio finally had made his way to Lorule Castle. All that was left of it was the Throne Room, where Hilda was holding Yuga Ganon back.

Though his cowardly tendencies had diminished greatly, he still held them in his heart, and standing just a door away from Yuga Ganon made him feel them more than he had in months. He wanted nothing more than to turn and run for the hills.

' _I can't do this,_ ' he thought.

' _But I_ _have to_ ,' his thoughts fought back.

' _But I'm scared._ '

' _Would Link have stopped just because he was scared?_ '

Ravio's grip on the Master Sword tightened, and he swallowed back the lump that showed up in his throat every time he thought of Link. "No," he mumbled to himself. "No, Link wouldn't stop. There is no stopping now. I'm going to do it. I'm _going_ to do it."

When Ravio had finished saving the Sages, they offered the Triforce of Courage to him. Ravio felt it create a warm, tingling sensation in the back of his left hand. It gave him something akin to an adrenaline rush, though he thought that perhaps ' _courage rush_ ' would be more fitting. It was as if courage was a physical thing that he could feel flow through his veins, now. His resolve strengthened, he pushed through the doors, only to find that Yuga Ganon was nowhere to be seen in the circular room. The only person in there was Hilda, who was standing before the framed painting of Zelda. Ravio slowly walked up to her.

"Ah, it's you..." Hilda said, not bothering to turn around to look at Ravio. "I haven't been able to connect with you in months. I'm glad to know you're safe. You've done well to come so far, Hero of Hyrule. I trust you now have the Triforce of Courage?"

" _I_ have it," Ravio gently said, realizing that she thought he was Link.

Then he realized, when she held her hand up to Zelda's painting as if nothing was strange at all, that she couldn't tell the difference between his voice and Link's because there was no such difference. The Triforce of Wisdom on the painted Zelda's hand began to glow golden. Ripples came forth, and out of them materialized the Triforce. It floated down until it was just above Hilda's hand, and she let out a small laugh. She turned around, and—

" _Ravio?!_ " Hilda yelled, red eyes wide in surprise. Her eyes then narrowed in anger. "What are _you_ doing here? You vanish on me and now come crawling back? Why?"

Ravio sheathed the Master Sword and knelt down. "Forgive me, Your Highness. I'm a coward at heart. There was no way that I had the courage to stand up to you and Yuga, but I was smart enough to go to Hyrule. I knew they'd have a hero who could help me. But—"

"Another betrayal?!" Hilda interrupted, slamming the end of her staff on the ground. "Link has proven useful to me, but you—! You wanted him to _defeat_ me?"

"I-I'm sorry, my princess," Ravio said. He stared down, unable to make eye contact with her. "But it was with the best of intentions."

"Where has he gone?" she demanded.

Ravio shut his eyes. "I ... was trying to tell you. He ... died."

" _What?!_ " Hilda shouted.

"Link was murdered, and I've had to take his place." Ravio looked back up at her. " _I_ have Hyrule's Triforce of Courage, and I'm here to stop you like I should have done months ago!"

Flames of rage erupted in Hilda's eyes. "I must have your Triforce!" she yelled.

Hilda threw the Triforce of Wisdom into the air, then absorbed it into her body. She laughed evilly as a wave of her power coursed through the room, a dark portal opening in the middle. She stood surrounded by flames as dark magic flew wildly out of the portal, and then out came Yuga Ganon from it.

"Yuga! I command you! Seize the Triforce of Courage from him! Lorule shall be reborn!"

Hilda used her magic to disappear as Yuga Ganon roared so loud that the room shook. It took Ravio a second to recover mentally from the monstrous roar, to realize that the time to fight Yuga Ganon was here.

If there was one thing Ravio knew how to do, it was run away, and that's precisely what he did. He ran out of the way of Yuga Ganon's trident, unsheathed the Master Sword, and slashed at the evil being's back. Yuga Ganon growled, turned, and so fast that Ravio had no time to run, he broadly swung his trident. Ravio went flying back, landing on the stone floor with a disgusting _crack_ from the back of his head. He felt blood start to pour out from his chest and his head, pain ripping forth from both of his injuries. He fought back tears and stood up.

He raced around Yuga Ganon, ignoring his pain, and slashed at him again with all his might. Yuga Ganon teleported away from his attacks, then siphoned magic into his trident before stabbing it forward. Ravio just barely got out of the way. Their fight evolved into a game of cat and mouse, Ravio trying to attack between the moments of him running from Yuga Ganon's attacks towards him. With each successful attack he got on Yuga Ganon, Ravio felt pride bubble up inside him.

Once Yuga Ganon realized that Ravio had caught onto his attack patterns, he switched it up. Ravio suspected after Yuga Ganon teleported away that he would appear somewhere else in the room immediately like he had before, but he didn't. Instead, flames of dark magic shot down from the ceiling, catching Ravio off guard. Ravio screamed in pain and ran, only for another one to promptly come down and hit him. Five more that Ravio somehow managed to avoid pounded down onto the floor before Yuga Ganon appeared again. Ravio ran over to him, though he didn't manage to get a hit in before Yuga Ganon teleported away again.

Yuga Ganon invoked dark magic into his trident as he had done multiple times before stabbing it forward, but this time he threw it. Ravio ducked down quickly, then stood back up not realizing that it wasn't done yet. The trident came back spinning like a boomerang, hitting Ravio from behind unexpectedly and knocking him to the ground. Its sharp edges cut through his shirts and skin, its magic sending a burning sensation all over his fresh wound.

A tear finally made its way out of Ravio's clenched eyes. The burning spread through his entire body, and he wasn't sure how long he could bear it. He pushed himself up slightly and opened his eyes. Shining through his glove was the Triforce of Courage on the back of his left hand. Feeling another courage rush coming on, he shot to his feet and slashed his sword at Yuga Ganon as many times as he could. Yuga Ganon retaliated by stabbing his trident into Ravio's stomach. A dry scream left Ravio's mouth, and he found himself crumpled up on the floor again.

Ravio's hand found a bottle in his pouch, which he pulled out to find was empty. He quickly pulled out the rest of them in one go. All empty. He didn't even have a single potion left.

Knowing that there was nothing else he could do, Ravio got up and slashed at Yuga Ganon again and again. Yuga Ganon slouched over, drawing in sharp, raspy breaths, much like Ravio. Hilda reappeared behind him, and Ravio stood off to the side, hand clasped at the heavily bleeding wound on his stomach, hoping it was over. He was losing so much blood.

"Give me your Triforce of Power, Yuga!" Hilda ordered. "We mustn't be defeated! If we are, Lorule will be lost forever!"

Yuga Ganon didn't respond, or even so much as acknowledge that she had spoken.

"Come now, obey me! Give it to me at once!" Hilda yelled with increasing anger.

Yuga Ganon made pig-like noises that Ravio could only assume were supposed to be laughter. "My dear, sweet, deluded Hilda...! What care have I to save your crumbling kingdom? It's no better than that hideous Hyrule. When the Triforce is mine, I plan to remake Lorule in _my_ image. Now you, my dark beauty, must serve your purpose!"

Yuga Ganon swiftly turned and waved his hand towards Hilda, entrapping her in bright light. When the light faded, there was a portrait of Hilda holding the Triforce with the piece of Wisdom illuminated in her place.

"I can hardly decide which of my princess portraits is prettier," Yuga Ganon mused. "But I do know which of you foolish royal girls has what I need, and now it will be _mine_."

Light swirled around Yuga Ganon as the portrait of Hilda disappeared within him. He laughed and turned to face Ravio, looking even more demonic than he had before. He showed Ravio the back of his left hand, where the Triforces of Wisdom and Power were glowing.

"I shall soon take my rightful place among the Gods! And then the beauty of destruction will rain down upon this world!"

Ravio held his left hand up, showing off his own Triforce in response. Despite the courage flowing through his veins, he was too scared to talk, knowing his words would come out as sobs, but his gesture said everything that he needed to.

"That piece will be mine!" Yuga Ganon yelled.

Yuga Ganon, his trident gone, conjured up a ball of dark magic and tossed it at Ravio. Ravio deflected it back with his sword, and Yuga Ganon punched it right back over to him. They went back and forth, back and forth, until finally Yuga Ganon didn't time his punch right and he was hit by his own magic. He fell backwards and merged into the walls.

" _Hey_..."

At the call of the female voice, Ravio looked up at the only girl still in the room—Zelda, trapped in her portrait. "It is I, Princess Zelda... Your current weapons will be useless while Yuga is a painting, so I bestow upon you a gift."

A golden bow materialized in front of Ravio. He didn't need Zelda to tell him that the bow's majesty was the work of the Triforce; he could feel his piece resonating as he grasped the intricate beauty.

"This bow is imbued with the light of the Triforce, and can only be fired while you are merged into a wall," Zelda explained. "Yuga cannot escape its radiance, not even in his painted form. Now, for the sake of our worlds, let fly these arrows, and may your aim be true!"

Ravio merged into the wall next to Yuga Ganon and promptly shot an arrow into the monster. While it did freeze him where he was, it didn't do anything that Ravio needed it to be doing. He exited the wall and merged into it again behind Yuga Ganon, and shot an arrow into his back. The combination of both arrows was enough to make Yuga Ganon force himself out of the wall, and Ravio followed his lead. While Yuga Ganon was trying to recover from being shot with the Light Arrows, Ravio delivered more blows to him with his sword.

Yuga Ganon teleported away, leaving Ravio by himself. Beams of fire shot out of the walls one by one, and Ravio couldn't avoid the first one. The flames flickered out as soon as they hit him, but damage had been done immediately. Ravio smelt something disgusting, and nearly vomited when he realized it was the smell of his own burnt skin.

Ravio didn't notice when Yuga Ganon came back into the room, and next thing he knew, he was hit by a ball of dark magic. He fell back on the ground, electricity making his body convulse uncontrollably.

" _STOP!_ " he screamed. It was pointless, he knew, but he needed to scream. Tears were rapidly falling down his scrunched-up face. He just wanted everything to be over already. He was in too much pain, losing too much blood. There was more of his blood spilled on the floor than inside him at that point.

"Give me the Triforce and I will!" Yuga Ganon said.

For half a second, Ravio considered letting go of the Master Sword and handing himself over. Horrified at his thoughts, his eyes snapped open to see Yuga Ganon hovering over him.

"So, are you going to cooperate and give me it, or will I have to kill you to take it? Your choice."

"You are _not_ taking it from me!" Ravio yelled.

A moment of regret washed over Ravio as Yuga Ganon sent more dark magic hurtling down at him. He opened his teary eyes when the convulsions stopped. His vision was pulsing in and out, his brain swirling in his head. He felt his heart drop in his chest when it hit him that he physically couldn't go on much longer.

Ravio was going to die just like Link did.

His mortifying realization invigorated him. He shot to his feet and stabbed Yuga Ganon. The beast teleported to the other side of the room and summoned dark magic into each hand. He blasted them one after the other at Ravio, who deflected them with his sword. They bounced back and forth, picking up so much speed that Ravio was swinging his sword back and forth as fast as he possibly could, until finally they both collided with Yuga Ganon.

Once he collected himself, Yuga Ganon merged into the wall, and Ravio followed suit. Yuga Ganon charged towards Ravio at once. Ravio popped out of the wall before he could get hit, then went back in on the other side of Yuga Ganon. He tried to shoot him with a Light Arrow, but Yuga Ganon turned around and blocked it from hitting him. He charged again, and the events that happened before replayed. Yuga Ganon blocked the shot from the front, but Ravio couldn't hit him from the back when he turned around at the last minute.

An idea came to Ravio. As Yuga Ganon charged towards him once more, Ravio turned away from him and shot a Light Arrow. It flew around along the walls until it made its way into Yuga Ganon's unguarded back. Yuga Ganon fell out of the wall and over onto the ground. Ravio hopped out, and used the opportunity to stab the Master Sword deep into his head.

Yuga Ganon roared loudly as bright white light came over his whole body, gradually growing brighter until there was one quick flash of light, followed by whirls of dark magic, and then he was gone. Hilda appeared collapsed on the floor where he had been. Light emanated from the portrait of Zelda, and much like how Yuga Ganon disappeared, Zelda appeared in an array of light.

Hilda used her staff to help her get up to her feet. "Wh-what more can I do...?" she said between heavy breaths.

"So it was you who had me imprisoned in that painting, Princess Hilda?" Zelda inquired.

Hilda glared up at her. " _Obviously_."

"Please, Princess Hilda... No one understands the sacred duty a princess has to her people more than I, but you can't—"

"You understand _nothing!_ " Hilda interjected. "Your kingdom has been under the protection of your Triforce..."

Zelda's eyebrows drew together. "But that's...!"

"This isn't over! I must have it!"

Hilda looked towards Ravio, who had fallen backwards against the wall. Zelda gasped as she took notice of him, and she ran over.

"What—what _happened?_ " Zelda questioned. "Where's Link?"

The look Ravio gave her was enough. Zelda gasped again, and tears flooded into her pure blue eyes.

"Your precious hero died, so _he_ came in and tried to _stop_ me," Hilda spat out. She slowly walked over towards him and Zelda. "Ravio is a _traitor_. He'd rather see Lorule crumble than help it."

Ravio shook his head as much as he could. "No, no... That's not true. Of course I don't want to see Lorule crumble, Princess... I wish the best for our kingdom. But by ruining Hyrule...? You'd bring out the absolute _worst_ in Lorule. There must be some other way..."

Hilda hung her head, and a sob escaped her lips. Ravio's words had started to break through her. " _No_..."

"Don't you realize?" Ravio pushed himself up slightly, grunting and squeezing his eyes shut as it sent pain throughout his body. "The reason your noble ancestors destroyed our Triforce ... was to _stop_ such chaos!"

"That's not what I...!"

"Look around you... This is _exactly_ what happened with our Triforce!"

Hilda's eyes flew open in horror, and she gasped. "Oh, no..."

"Princess Hilda, I..." Ravio looked up at her, a warm smile on his face despite everything. "I just wanted to save you from all this— _you,_ who've worried endlessly about the fate of Lorule... Please, Princess Hilda ... let's do the right thing. Lorule may be doomed ... but at least our kingdom won't be condemned for stealing Hyrule's Triforce."

Hilda contemplated what Ravio said. "...You're right," she quietly admitted. Her eyes then widened in horror once more, as if everything before her truly clicked in her mind. " _Ravio_ , you're...!"

 _Dying_. "I know," Ravio whispered. With every second that passed, he could feel death creeping closer to him.

Hilda fell to her knees next to Ravio, tears flowing down her cheeks. "Ravio, I—I'm sorry! I didn't mean to—I never wanted...! You _can't_ die!"

"Not like I have ... much of a choice," Ravio quietly said. "Unless ... you or Princess Zelda ... have enough magic in you to...?"

Hilda's eyes shot over to Zelda's, begging her silently to use her magic to heal Ravio. Her own magic was depleted by Yuga Ganon.

Zelda held her hands over Ravio's chest, drawing magic power into them. Her lips pursed in concentration as the golden glow of her hands attempted to heal Ravio. She panted after just a few seconds, and her arms fell.

"I don't have enough power... I used most of it to summon the Bow of Light," she said. Tears of guilt welled up in her eyes. "I'm sorry, Ravio... Do you have a—?"

"No Fairy, or potions, either," he answered. "It's—it's fine... Really. I came in here expecting to die." Ravio laughed even though it really wasn't funny. He suddenly stopped laughing and began coughing, blood spurting out of his mouth.

"Ravio!" both princesses gasped in unison.

Ravio groaned and closed his eyes. He could have died right then and there, but he refused to go just yet. He opened his eyes as much as he could. "Princess Zelda... Go home, and take Hyrule's Triforce with you. Make everything right again."

After Zelda solemnly nodded, Ravio looked over at Hilda. His cheeks went warm. He weakly reached over and grabbed her hands. "Princess... My Princess... I'm sorry that I can't stick around... You have no idea how much I want to stay by your side. Forgive me for not fighting better for you."

" _Ravio_ ," Hilda cried. "You don't have to apologize for anything. _I_ should be the only person saying sorry."

A tiny smile crept up on Ravio's face. "Don't apologize... And don't cry. Everything is going to be okay."

Ravio's eyes shuttered closed, and his body went slack against the wall, smile still on his lips.

He won.


End file.
